ABOUT MTA

The association is headed up by U Win Naing (President of MTA) who is assisted in his efforts by the Chairmen of the six active committees. The current incumbent President brings a great deal of knowledge from the private sector, as he is the Director of the TawWin KanbawZa Mountain Co.,Ltd and the Creator of Yoke The’ Myanmar Tea.

MTA benefits from the wealth of experience of key EC/CEC members who consult closely to ensure the successful operation of the association, such as Daw Nyo Nyo Sein (President of MTA from 2016 to 2022) who is the CEO of the U Karka Co.,Ltd. She is also well-known as an innovator in Myanmar fermented tea leaf (laphet). U Tun Myaing, President of MTA from 2013-2016) also lends his expertise as a veteran of the tea industry. He established the first Myanmar Tea Cluster in 2013, leading a lot of development in Palaung Region and is a well-known businessman as the Chairman of Shwe Pan Law Co.,Ltd and Shwe Kwan Hal CTC Tea Factory.

Change makers in the Myanmar tea sector

We are passionate about Myanmar tea, and we are also determined to bring it to the tables of the world. We are active in many ways in bringing about awareness and change to an industry that empowers and enables thousands of people in rural areas to live sustainably and in harmony with nature.

Such initiatives include the promotion of environmentally friendly practices like analogue forestry and organic cultivation of plantations through our “Crafting Biodiversity Friendly Tea” Workshop (March 2024), coupled with efforts to support our members in their commercial endeavours by penetrating export markets for Myanmar Specialty Tea by participating in World Tea Expo 2024 where Myanmar Specialty Green Tea, Black Tea and Oolong Tea was part of the Tea Beverage Challenge.

What we do

The six strategic pillars to our service portfolio are assisting our members with:

Access to market

Advocacy and lobbying

Trade facilitation

Capacity building

Certification

Access to finance

Collective trademark

We aim to be pioneers in this important industry that transforms the lives of so many people in the rural areas. We understand that we must remain competitive and are invested in raising awareness and standards throughout the sector. This is why we developed a Collective trademark which has recently been launched. Its aim is to instill pride in the local market and further deepen trust in the brands of Myanmar tea that international buyers are falling in love with. Through its use it will provide better market opportunities for members. In addition, we hope it will encourage and promote tea cultivation in the country. Ultimately it will assure consumers of the quality and authenticity of Burmese tea grown locally.

Organic Awarness Training(Ale Chaung Village) copy.jpg

Knowledge is power

With the ultimate aim of empowerment and strengthening the industry we lead the sector by providing a range of training programmes to encourage an improvement in productivity and environmental sustainability such as:

Solar Dome System Training
Hygiene and Shelf-life Course for Laphet
Basic Green Tea Processing Method
Ready-to-eat Laphet Processing and Shelf-life Course
GHP/GMP practices for Myanmar tea and Laphet
Soil Conservation Training
Trainers-of-trainers on Handmade Green Tea Processing and GAP/GHP
Geographical Indications and Intellectual Property Workshop
Tea Pruning Training
Crafting Biodiversity Friendly Tea Training
Supporting Tea Pruning Materials for Tea Growers
Specialty Tea Training

Beyond today

The association’s future plans for Myanmar tea sector development include the establishment of a model plantation area for the long-term sustainability of tea cultivation. We are also working hard on expanding our market by constantly improving the quality and standards of all parts of the value chain (from the tea plants and varieties right through to the manufacturing of tea bags and packaging options) in order to reach a high-end market.

After learning much under the guidance of ITC we are working on the introduction of standard guidelines to ensure the safety of the whole tea process. Last, but not least, we are actively encouraging the Myanmar tea culture and creativity about tea, and by cooperating with consultants and researchers for wider tea consumption.